When I answered all the questions on TVNZ’s political compass I miraculously came out as having political views that were most closely represented by the Greens and Mana!! In 2011 I voted for the Labour Candidate and Green Party. This year, however, I gave my two votes to the Labour Party.

The big question is why? Am I voting against my own values? Am I being politically nostalgic and voting for the party of my parents and grandparents? Am I wasting my vote instead of being smart and tactical?

These are all good questions so let me try and explain why I gave my two ticks to Labour.

In terms of leadership. David Cunliffe is the son of an Anglican Priest I am the son of a Methodist Minister. There is something about being a Parson’s Kid that distinguishes you from those who are the children of doctors, lawyers, or business executives. Being a Parson’s Kid is likely to make you , altruistic and open to the needs and interests of those in need , marginalised and poor. So that’s a plus for me. The downside of this is that it can sometimes make you seem a bit moralistic and preachy and I can see that in some of David’s comments but this is not a terminal condition . It can be and normally is addressed with age!. Anyway, I tend to prefer leaders who have some life long and empathetic connection with the poor rather than the privileged.

There is some nostalgia involved as well. I have been a Labour man all my life. I can’t abandon my tribe just because they are down in the polls or spurned by a significant chunk of the voting population. I am in favour of a return to more class based politics. There is no other party based on organised and disorganised labour. I am in favour of reviving the Union Movement so that the interests of working people can be represented robustly and justly. The bias has been drifting towards Employers and Capital for far too long. Organised labour was responsible for most of the significant social and political changes of the 20th There would be no universal education, welfare , or womb to tomb security had labour not promoted these things over the course of the 20th century. So I am in favour of Labour rediscovering its working class roots, shifting itself leftwards, and working to eliminate child poverty and adult poverty as well as inequality , subordination and domination at all levels of social life.

I am in favour of key state assets like power, airlines, railways, telecommunications being returned to public ownership.

I am in favour of higher and fairer taxation processes. We do need a Capital Gains Tax to tax wealth as well as income. This is not something that needs to be defended cautiously. A CGT is common sense and a tax levied by most other industrialised countries many years ago.The OECD is also recommending it for NZ.

I am in favour of more protection of the privacy of every individual citizen of this country. We need political parties that are committed to expanding and protecting Civil Liberties. I am astonished at how many liberties seem to have been eroded in NZ over the 17 years I was away. Labour needs to be a bit more pro active on this issue but its making the right progressive noises.

In addition to a Royal Commission on the powers of the GSCB. I would like its mandate to be extended to the costs and benefits of membership of the UKUSA intelligence arrangement. I’m not at all persuaded that the security gained by “Five Eyes” is worth the liberty lost with all the electronic surveillance available to the state and New Zealand’s largest companies.

I’m in favour of regions like Dunedin receiving strong state support for the revival of Hillside, the retention of Invermay and the relocation of some significant Government departments . Its about time that we started thinking of more holistic development for New Zealand . Far too many government policies are being guided by Auckland’s needs and interests rather than the interests of the whole country. Labour has directed some attention towards the revival of Dunedin’s hospitals, research capacities and industry. This is a start but the momentum must be continued.

I’m in favour of clean government and an end to dirty tricks and ad hominem politics. I was appalled and disgusted at the revelations in Dirty Politics. I see no hint of remorse or real regret on the part of the current Prime Minister at any of the whale oil revelations. I do see some desire on the part of Labour to move beyond negative adversarial politics towards politics.

I think that David Cunliffe and the Labour Party made a major tactical and strategic mistake by not accepting the Green’s Offer of a formal coalition. I think that this would have animated the election campaign in ways that would have resulted in the polls jumping for a Red-Green Alliance. I am voting Labour this year, however, so that the Greens have a political partner large enough to result in a change of Government. If Labour’s party vote collapses and they do not win all their electorate seats then there will be no Red-Green coalition on the 21st There is more chance of a change of government with an expanded Labour vote than an expanded green vote.

I am voting Labour in faith and in the hope that all that I have talked about will come to pass.

I am hoping that David will become a servant leader of a strong and disciplined labour movement.

I am hoping that a Red Green coalition will be able to overcome the democratic deficit, rekindle popular faith in democratic processes and rebuild trust and confidence in politicians and politics.

I am hoping that a Red Green coalition will be able to state its preferences for the poor, the marginalised and the oppressed and develop policies that will serve their interests. I am hoping that the politics of compassion rather than consumption and greed will prevail in the 20th

I am hoping that our politicians will be advocates for policies of emancipation rather than the politics of fear and I am hoping that every citizen of Aotearoa-New Zealand will become active agents of their own political destiny.

I am also hoping that a change of government will result in more enlightened leadership on the international stage.

I know that I am hoping a lot but without hope and vision the people will perish . If I can’t be hopeful in the rationality and wisdom of the people then I’ll need to do some fundamental rethinking about motivation and the drivers of change.

I am hopeful, however, that my compatriots-even at this late stage — will realise that its time for a change and that we can reverse the tide of greed, self interest, short term thinking and fearfulness.

I am hopeful that we will wake to a red sunrise and a clean , green and pleasant land on the 21st I know I’m hoping for a lot and I’ve given 2 precious ticks to labour in confidence that some of my lot will be realised. If its not mmmmmm what were my value preferences??????

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About kevinclements2012

Short CV
Professor Kevin P Clements.
I am the Foundation Chair of Peace and Conflict Studies and Director of the New Zealand Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Otago, Dunedin New Zealand and Secretary General of the Toda Institute for Global Peace and Policy.
Prior to taking up these positions I was the Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies and Foundation Director of the Australian Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Queensland, Brisbane Australia .
I went to Queensland from International Alert where I was Secretary General from January 1999 to September 2003. International Alert is one of the world’s largest NGOs working on conflict transformation. It pioneered innovative policy and practical approaches to conflict prevention and transformation in Africa ,Eurasia and Asia . It has also made a major contribution to the mainstreaming of conflict prevention within European Foreign and Development Ministries, the EU and a variety of UN institutions. During his time there I was on the Board of the European Centre for Conflict Prevention and past President of the European Peace Building Liaison Office in Brussels.
Prior to becoming Secretary General of International Alert I was the Vernon and Minnie Lynch Chair of Conflict Resolution at the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University Fairfax Virginia USA 1994-2000 and Director of the Institute from 1994-1999.
My career has been a combination of academic analysis and practice in the areas of peacebuilding and conflict transformation. I was, for example, formerly Director of the Quaker
United Nations Office in Geneva and Head of the Peace Research Centre at the Australian National University in Canberra .Prior to this I was Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Coordinator of Peace Studies at Canterbury University, Christchurch New Zealand . My first academic position was as a lecturer in Sociology at Hong Kong University . I took up this position from a Post Doctoral Fellowship at Oxford University where I worked on development issues with Paul Streeten and others.
I have been an advisor to the New Zealand, Australian , British , Swedish and Dutch governments on conflict prevention , peace, defence and security issues and advised the German Government and the OECD on States and Violence. I was, a member of the New Zealand Government’s Defence Committee of Enquiry in 1985 and I currently conducting Problem Solving Workshops in North East Asia with high level participants from Japan, China and Korea.
Iwas President of the International Peace Research Association (IPRA) from
1994-1998, President of the IPRA Foundation from 1995-2000 and Secretary General of the Asia Pacific Peace Research Association. I was Secretary General of the International Peace Research Association 2008-2010.
I got my B.A, B.A Hon ( First Class) and Ph.D in Sociology from Victoria University of Wellington New Zealand. and held a Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the University of Oxford from 1970-1971.
I have been a regular consultant to a variety of non governmental and intergovernmental organisations on disarmament, arms control, conflict resolution, development and regional security issues and I have written or edited 7 books and over 160 chapters /articles on conflict transformation, peacebuilding, preventive diplomacy and development with a specific focus on the Asia Pacific region.
Research Expertise
1. Peace Research Theory- Conflict and Conflict Resolution Theory .
Preventive Diplomacy , Development and Peacebuilding
2. International and Regional Regimes-APEC, ASEAN, the ARF, ECOWAS
3. Political Sociology-International Organisations. Multilateral/bilateral
negotiating processes.
4. Fragile States, Legitimacy and Political Hybridity
5. Alternative Defence and Security Policies-Peace and Security in the Asia-Pacific region.
6. The politics and ethics of international humanitarian intervention
7. Altruism and Compassion
In my spare time I like to paint with acrylics or pastels, go to the theatre, listen to classical music, visit art galleries etc!